BP may fund more free beach concerts

The free Jimmy Buffett concert that drew thousands to an Alabama beach may be the first in a string of big-name shows funded by BP to boost a tourism industry hard-hit by the Gulf oil spill.

By Jay ReevesThe Associated Press

GULF SHORES | The free Jimmy Buffett concert that drew thousands to an Alabama beach may be the first in a string of big-name shows funded by BP to boost a tourism industry hard-hit by the Gulf oil spill.Promoters say they hope to line up other acts — including country singers Faith Hill and Zac Brown and soft rocker Jack Johnson — and stage similar free shows through the fall to bring visitors to the Gulf Shores beach where Buffett played and send them into area hotels, condominiums, restaurants and stores.A $15 million tourism grant from BP could be used to stage and promote the shows, state and local officials said.“We know of no better way to get a big bang for our buck that doing this,” said Gulf Shores Mayor Robert Craft. An estimated 35,000 people poured onto the public beach on Sunday for the Buffett show in a town that only has about 5,000 full-time residents.Florida and Mississippi have been running commercials promoting their beaches, and Alabama Gov. Bob Riley said a string of beach concerts would help Alabama differentiate itself from the others.“The biggest thing I want people to see is the word ‘Alabama,' ” Riley said in an interview during the Buffett concert Sunday night. “Most people don't even know we have a beach.” Riley got into the act at the concert, throwing hundreds of red baseball caps emblazoned with the word “Alabama” into the crowd. He signed many of them and walked away from his first Buffett show with one of the caps on his head — backward.Tourism accounts for more than 40,000 jobs and $2.3 billion in spending in Baldwin County, site of both the Gulf Shores and Orange Beach resorts, but business has been down by about half this summer because of the oil spill, which has intermittently left area beaches coated by oil.Craft said tourism promotion money from BP paid some $3.5 million in production costs for the Buffett show, and the performers donated their time. The tab was higher than expected since the stage had to be erected and torn down twice because of a postponement caused by Hurricane Alex.Officials believe they could stage similar shows at a cost of about $1.5 million each, Craft said, and they have a “wish list” of performers that includes Johnson, Brown and Hill, whose family has vacationed on the Alabama coast for several years.Tourism promoters say forecasts indicate business may be off by as much as 50 percent for the entire summer tourist season because of the spill, and they're eager for anything that will bring people to the beach.“By creating and hosting various events, like the Buffett concert, and by utilizing a multimedia marketing campaign, we aim to slow and possibly reverse this trend,” said Mike Foster, vice president of marketing for the Alabama Gulf Coast Convention and Visitors Bureau.